Of Jade and Lacquer
by kstewdeux
Summary: POST-MANGA. Inuyasha is ill yet no one believes him. Trapped at an inn by an unnatural blizzard, a menancing presence waits for the perfect moment to take adantage of his weakness. What will happen once it escapes? A Gothic style tale. COMPLETE.
1. chapter 1

It isn't often that my wife and I manage to secure such fine accommodations in the winter. So many innkeepers look down upon me with disdain and by association, her as well.

This inn is a veritable palace with every imaginable luxury. Beautiful gold statutes and intricate paintings litter every room. The futons are covered in the finest of silk. Lacquered cabinets with embellishments in such detail that it could only be achieved by the most expert of hands. Each room equipped with access to a private spring in which to bathe. Yet the only reason we were allowed to stay were the rumors of what lay inside. I wish I could say it was haunted but I'm sure the truth is much less interesting.

Still, there is something strange. Why else would they have given us a room so cheaply? Why were we the only guests?

Kagome teases me, of course, but why should I expect anything less? I knew her disposition well when I took her hand in marriage.

For someone of her profession, she can be incredibly small minded when it comes to the supernatural. It is beyond her comprehension to believe that some things were beyond explanation. There is always a logical reason in her mind. Some solution to every oddity in life. Some demon behind every inexplicable phenomena.

Perhaps that is why she doesn't believe me when I say I've felt ill. She insists there is no otherworldly being causing my malady but I know better. It is difficult to garner support when your own wife is making proclamations to anyone who will listen that your illness is just a fantasy in your mind. To my disappointment, my friend is also a man of great spiritual power and he agrees with her conclusion.

And so we travel and perform exorcisms to take my mind off my condition. Personally I cannot help but disagree with their conclusion. I have attempted to maintain some semblance of normalcy yet the slaying of demons takes very little effort on my part and allows much time to muse over my malady. It exhausts me as well and it has been taking an increasingly long time to recover from even the smallest of battles.

I sometimes think were my condition to present itself in a more obvious fashion, if there was such a way in this time to look into my head to find the cause, they would act more amicably but, alas, there is not.

So I will dwell on it no longer.


	2. Chapter 2

I had never been so glad in my life to leave a place yet here we are returned. As we traveled towards the luminescent horizon, nature's ire appeared to have turned decidedly against me, shedding thick snow and rushing towards us with unnatural grace and speed. As the treacherous clouds approached, the temperature dropped drastically, almost as if I had left a toasty warm interior to step out into the chilled, unforgiving elements. The wind picked up and slapped me with its unbearably rough, icy hands, tormenting me with sounds of dread and endless suffering. So, we had no other choice but to return to this forsaken place.

As it had turned out the accommodation's vacancies are due to some dispute between the heirs of two prominent lords and more cautious voyagers have avoided it thusly to avoid drawing the ire of either. I must say this ruins my ideas of ghostliness but I find I could not care less. There is something decidedly unnatural about this place. Nature has conspired to confine me to this prison seemingly by design. I even said as much to Kagome in the hope that she would be amicable to leaving but she merely repeated her sentiment that she sensed no demonic auras nearby and that I was merely being difficult.

I must say I sometimes feel irrationally angry with her when she declares that these suspicions are only in my head but my temper has always been of that variety. I cannot fathom attempting to explain the changes within me when she is so decidedly against the idea. Perhaps it's due to a nervous condition of some kind or recent events triggering the long-term effects of my extended bout of solitude. My wife has told me even if that was true, I should learn to control my temper; so, I have been making a valiant effort in my opinion to work towards controlling it but I must say it has only served to leave me all the more exhausted and weary.

As I lay beside her - something that feels foreign to me even now yet something that until recently has been a most welcome change – I find myself on high alert for signs of the unnatural around us yet all I can hear are the sounds from the tumultuous storm outside.


	3. Chapter 3

I cannot stand this place yet we are confined thusly until this storm passes through. I would have preferred one farther from the edge where my superior hearing can hear every small thing passing by outside yet she has insisted it would not be in our best interest to request such a thing due to my lineage. Despite all this, she has been fawning over me during this time and not disturbing me without cause. Perhaps this is because I have been demonstrably tired and sleeping at unusually long intervals. There have been many times when she has braved the elements to seek medicinal herbs for me from the innkeeper or nearby villages to replenish my energy. It pains me that she must go alone but with my condition, it hardly seems practical that I accompany her. She demonstrates her love for me and has finally seemed to accept something is wrong but I must admit guilt riddles my conscience that I do not feel more grateful. We are only traveling aimlessly on my account. Our life has been made increasingly difficult in that way, all for the sake of improving my health. Perhaps, in her own way, she has acknowledged there is something wrong and the knowledge that she loves me allows me to breathe easier.

It is a large, comfortable room warmed by the adjoining hot spring and the small hearth in the center. I must admit the heat is a balm on my nerves, allowing me the luxury and ability to truly relax as I am doing now. Yet it is also filled with lacquered cabinets with designs made from jade and gold as well as other precious things that will forever be beyond our means. On the largest are intricate cherry blossoms surrounding a palace much like this one. On the smallest are carved demons of old. On the latter, there are times I feel their eyes following us. Kagome assures me this is a common phenomenon with such fine art as this but I cannot help my general feeling of unease.

There is something strange here. I just know not what.


	4. Chapter 4

With each passing glance, the smallest lacquered cabinet's flamboyant patterns gracefully outlined in jade bothers me more and more. The design is pronounced enough to constantly irritate but complex enough to demand study. Whenever my eyes trace the subtle flaws in the craftsmanship, the irregular angles seem almost to mock those who would say it is truly worthy of praise. Perhaps it is due to my superior eyesight that such a thing is noticed. The only positive thing I can say of the wretched piece is that the eyes must have originally been done very well. Almost too well if truth be told. There is an almost realistic quality to them.

Despite this quality, their color is now repugnant, almost revolting; carved originally from pearl, it has clouded and yellowed thanks to the passage of time. Our room is such a fair distance from the main hall I cannot help but think that the owners must have hated it to place it so far away. I hate it myself if not only for the life like eyes and for the way the firelight dances off those irregular angles accentuating their grotesque detail.

The sound of soft footsteps draws me from my musings and I feel the urge to beg her to allow me to turn the wretched cabinet to face the wall or leave this palace that sets my hair on end. To argue the latter, however, I know is futile and despite my promises to return it to its original place once we leave this infernal hell, she has instructed me that punishment would follow if I so much as touched the blasted piece. It was too _fragile_ to be moved or so she tells me.

Once this storm passes, I shall never return here so long as I may live and that will not be for many centuries to come. Even if I should come across this place again in a millennia, I would be remiss not to say it had been too soon.


	5. Chapter 5

We have been here nearly two weeks and yet this storm has refused to let up. Even if it were to attempt escape at this point, it would be pointless. In all likelihood we would be forced to return until the roads cleared enough to pass through.

A new development has come to my attention during this time. Kagome is with child. Rather than causing the elation I had expected, it has merely caused a flood of dread. Blood line aside, fear occupies my thoughts that my unseen and mostly unacknowledged condition might be passed on as well.

A bout of illness has spread amongst the other travelers who have taken refuge here lending credence to my belief that something unnatural is going on. For someone in her condition it seems incredibly imbecilic to be caring for them but she has insisted it is her life's work and that all they suffer from is mere colds. Despite her reassurances, I cannot help but worry.

I must admit I am glad that my condition is not as serious as theirs but the only purpose their illness serves is to increase my agitation and desire to leave. Kagome does not know how much I truly suffer being cooped up here. She insists there is nothing to be concerned about as I lack any physical symptoms. She knows there is no reason for alarm whereas this whole experience confuses and eats away at my very being. Despite my general discomfort, it weighs heavily on me that I am so useless here. Despite my condition, as much as the slaying of demons fatigued my body, I hate being idle. Yet my exhaustion is almost all consuming so I do not know why it bothers me so. No one would believe what an effort it is to accomplish what little I am able. To venture further than our room, to bathe and smile for the innkeeper's wife who brings us our food.

It is fortunate that Kagome is such a dear girl and loves to care for those in need of her skills but due to my condition, I cannot be with her at all times and that in itself scrapes at every fiber of my being. I have asked to accompany her, _begged_ _even_ , but she will not let me. I suppose she has never felt like this before in her life. She is always laughing and all smiles and joy. _Oh_ , how she laughs and teases me about that lacquered cabinet I despise so much and I must admit I join in on occassion despite feeling those eyes on my back.


	6. Chapter 6

Kagome has offered to have the cabinet moved, but as soon as that statement left her lips, she changed her mind and merely told me I was letting it get the better of me. That there was nothing unnatural about it at all and it was an unnecessary hassle for those who would open their doors to a couple such as us. Especially considering that we should not be here much longer.

She's right, of course. It is a most comfortable room as much as anyone need wish, and, of _course_ , I understand how much of a burden that would be to move such a heavy item. I would carry it myself if I did not feel so exhausted but such is the nature of my condition. In truth, I'm beginning to grow quite fond of these accommodations, all but for that accursed cabinet.

To avoid those eyes that seem to follow my every movement, I have taken to sitting just outside our door recently, despite the wind and snow that beats unrelentingly upon my face. I am able to see the snow gathering on the branches of the cherry blossom trees and in the various nooks and crannies of the architecture. What a sight it must be in the summer. I can almost see people walking amongst the beautiful shaded paths and arbors but Kagome has warned me not to explore them for myself during such a storm, especially in my condition. It is a comfort – a small comfort to be sure but one nonetheless – that she finally seems to be acknowledging something is wrong with me. Still, she insists that I ought to keep myself in check and not spread news of my condition to others for fear of being told to leave.

I would have already forced us to leave if it were not for this latest development. A woman carrying a child is in no condition to be wandering about at a time like this.


	7. Chapter 7

I wonder sometimes that if the storm were to subside enough, whether leaving even for the briefest of moments would relieve me of this endless torment but I find myself growing tired the moment I step outside the door. It is discouraging to say the least to think that I may not be well enough to leave when it does come that time. I wish I were getting better rather than worse but I must not think of that. It is a self fulfilling prophecy or so Kagome says.

Those infernal sulphur colored eyes stare at me as though it knows what a vicious influence it has. One demons eyes in particular haunts my every waking hour. It's gaze follows me wherever I go, always within eyesight. I have tried various positions around the room to no avail. It is always watching, _waiting_. I become positively angry at its persistence. I have never seen so much expression in an inanimate thing before, and I know from personal experience how such things are not always as they seem. How many items were possessed during our quest? How many times were things not as they appeared?

Yet my wife continues to reassure me that she senses no demonic presence or dark aura emanating from any object here. The other furniture in our room does not affect me. I don't spend countless hours outlining every detail, every chip or flaw in the lacquer in the other pieces. Only that one. On that _one_ , I notice everything. Every minute detail. The flaws that scream at me. The eyes that follow me everywhere.


	8. Chapter 8

She has been most cross with me for refusing to leave the room considering how ardently I begged only a few days ago yet I see no point in it. Not any longer. There is nothing of value outside as the storm has continued with a vengeance the likes of which I have never seen. Further, I am growing increasingly fond of this room _despite_ the small cabinet. Or perhaps it is _because_ of the small cabinet. It occupies my thoughts at all times. I lay on the futon and admire the detail hour after hour. I start from the bottom and work my way up, paying attention to every detail, any chip in the jade, every small crack in the gold, and those yellow tinted eyes. I find they make me less afraid if I meet their gaze.

The vast majority of the time I have lain here. I feel so awfully lazy but Kagome has made a point now to force me to go with her on her visits to the infirmed. By the time we return, however, it is all I can do to fall asleep much less eat or bathe as she wants me to. It is getting to be a very great effort for me to think straight but I am told it is just nerves from being idle. These past few days, however, upon seeing my distress, Kagome has allowed me to rest my head in her lap as she fondles my ears and coos words of comfort. It seems she has finally realized something is truly wrong with me but I fear it is too late.

She whispers about how much she loves me. That I am the most important thing in her world and that I must take care of myself for her sake, and force myself to get better. She insists she knows I have it within me to recover as I am the most stubborn being she has ever met. My stubbornness and my strength of will she mentions _frequently_. As she runs her fingers through my hair, she insists no one but myself can help me improve. Her presence is my only comfort but even that does not stop those horrid eyes from mocking me. Of course I never mention them anymore but I keep watch of it all the same. There are things in those eyes that nobody knows but me, nor will they ever. Behind those eyes I can see a consciousness that becomes clearer every day.


	9. Chapter 9

There is a _half-demon t_ rapped behind those walls, much like myself. I am more sure of that than of anything else I have ever encountered in my life. In those eyes, I see the telltale signs of long isolation. Perhaps it was trapped by some priestess of old. I don't like the reminder of what used to be my life at all. I wish we could leave this place and I suspect Kagome has begun to wish that as well.

It is difficult to speak with her about my condition because she loves me so but I tried last night during the new moon. It always seems to be easier to communicate my fears during that time. I usually hate my night of weakness but this time I looked forward to it. For once I would be able to say what needed to be said. What I didn't understand was her _fear_. My admission was never meant to scare her. Indeed it should not have. It was our duty to investigate signs of demonic presence or malicious beings. And yet her azure blue eyes looked positively horrified after I explained the demon trapped within the cabinet and as I turned, I could've sworn the eyes that haunted my every waking hour flashed red in anger as though it was alarmed I had exposed its secret.

At night, any kind of light makes the half-demon trapped behind those eyes plain as can be. It's suffering at being trapped for so long painful to see. By daylight, however, it is more subdued. For the past few days, all I've done anymore is lay on the futon. Kagome insists it is good that I sleep as often as possible. It is a very bad habit I have fallen into I am sure but it is not as bad today as it had been.

I _am_ concerned for my wife and the child she bears. Something isn't right. Perhaps my condition has spread. She has been acting very odd and even the other occupants, if I do see them at all, have been staring at us with a look I can't quite describe. It doesn't bother me, however, as much as it would've only a few days ago. She is stronger than I ever was or ever will be. It will not take her as it has me.

On a positive note, life has become so much more interesting now, _so_ much more. I feel like I have a greater purpose. Kagome is pleased that I seem to be more like my old self and the sad look in her eyes is all but gone. I'm feeling better, I must admit. I'm hardly sleeping at all anymore which I feel is a great improvement.

Yet I cannot help but watch them. They are the strangest yellow eyes. It makes me think of all the foul yellow things I've ever seen.

The eyes still follow me everywhere begging me to set them free but I cannot do so when I am being watched as carefully as I am. She thinks she has hidden her presence from me but scent never lies. She is there. I _know_ she is there. I don't understand her obsession.

It doesn't matter that she watches me. Those eyes are all that matter. There is a powerful being lying behind those eyes. He is trying to escape, I'm sure. Someone knows it's secret and it dares to hope yet no one could escape such a thing without help.

There are times I swear I have seen him when he believes no one is looking. The shadows on the wall do not lie but by the time I turn around he is gone. Though I always can see the shadow, he is able to move faster than I can turn.

Kagome has announced we are leaving in the morning. That we would leave today if we could. I only have one more night to free the trapped in that cabinet.


	10. Chapter 10

Although it is early, Kagome has gone to pay her respects to the innkeeper and other guests. It will be at least an hour before she returns which is plenty of time to free that half-demon without anyone being the wiser. As soon as she left, the poor thing began to shake the cabinet so I knew it was time. I chipped away at the lacquer, the jade, the gold, the pearl as he shook with all his might. Before too long, it was stripped bare and it escaped. Yet it seemed displeased with its newfound freedom. Before my very eyes, it began to claw angrily at the walls and floors. Destroying all the fineries within the room as though it were a mighty typhoon. He calls to me to leave this room and to set him free yet no matter how many times I open the door he will not step foot outside.

I have barricaded the door now for I fear if he were to escape he would tear all the palace down in his fury. Kagome has returned and is trying with all her might to open it. _Why_ is she calling for someone to come break down the door? Does she not know that _everything_ I do is to protect her? This beast will strike her down without conscience and it would a shame to allow it to do more damage to this fine establishment than has already been done.

Soon, however, she manages to break into the room and I am surprised by her horrified gaze.

"What have you _**done**_?" she cries out tearfully, "You need to fight it. Don't let it control you."

I don't understand what she means so I ignore her and continue to attempt to catch this wretched beast destroying all those beautiful things.

"I've gotten out at last," I hear a voice speak that sounds very much like my own except much gruffer than normal which gives me pause. The angry sounding voice continued as I spin to find the source, "In spite of _all_ of you, in spite of _him_ , in spite of these beads around my neck, in spite of that sword made to keep me in check. I am free and _nothing_ will hold me back."

It was a curious thing but as I followed the demon into the spring, I saw his reflection looked very much like myself with only a few differences. Jagged purple lines adorned his cheeks and crimson eyes looked back at me with as much shock and surprise as I felt. It was almost as though I were looking into a mirror.

 _FIN_


End file.
